Crepe-paper streamers are inexpensive party decorations that give big visual impact. With nothing but a roll of streamers, scissors, and tape, you can turn almost any get-together into a festive gathering. Decorating with streamers is all about expressing your own creativity in strips of crepe paper.

Unroll the crepe paper to the desired length and cut. Each streamer needs to span from the center of the room to an outside wall. In order to achieve a dramatic drape, the streamer must be a few feet longer than this distance. Just to be safe, you may want to overestimate how long the streamer needs to be. This will allow you to adjust the drape of the streamer. You can always trim it later.

While you can measure this distance, you may find it easier to cut one streamer as a reference. With a friends help, unroll the crepe paper from the center of the room to an exterior wall. Adjust the drape of the streamer and then cut. Use this streamer as a guide.

Repeat. Continue to add streamers to your hula hoop until it is completely covered. The streamers may overlap slightly. You can create a pattern with the streamers or attach the different colored crepe paper randomly.[1]

Suspend the hula hoop from the center of the ceiling. The attachment method you use depends entirely on the ceiling. The most convenient installation method involves tying the hula hoop to a light fixture or a beam. If these options aren’t available to you, get creative. You can also hang a hook from your ceiling to suspend the hula hoop from.

When you hang the hula hoop, make sure the staples used to attach the streamers are facing up.

Attach the streamers to outer walls or ceiling. Pull one streamer at a time to the edge of the room. Adjust the drape of the streamer and then secure it to the outer wall or ceiling with a piece of scotch tape. Repeat until each streamer is draped across the ceiling. When it is done, the ceiling will be hidden by streamers.[3]

Determine the dimensions of your back-drop. Before you assemble the back-drop, measure its length and width. Mark the dimensions of the back-drop with a light pencil mark, chalk, or a piece of tape.[4]

The back-drop may be as large or as small as you’d like—it will really depend on the space you’re using and how you intend to capture the back-drop on camera. Ask yourself the following questions: Do you want to take full-body shots or will the pictures be from the waist up? How tall are your guests? How many guests do you want in one picture?

Attach a piece of masking tape—sticky side out—to the wall. Stretch a piece of masking tape—sticky side out—along the top edge of your back-drop from corner to corner. To secure the tape to the wall, cover each end with a piece of masking tape.

Stick streamers onto the tape. Attach streamers to the masking tape from left to right. Roll out each streamer to the desired length and cut it in a straight line. As you move from one corner of the back-drop to the other, layer the streamers slightly and vary the colors.

Don’t worry about cutting every streamer to the same length. You will trim them later.[6]

Cover the top edge with a piece of crepe paper. Place pieces of rolled masking tape along the top edge of the back-drop. Roll a single streamer along the top edge of the back-drop in a straight line. Cover the two small vertical pieces of tape on each end in the same manner.

Tape the bottom of the streamers to the wall. Stretch a piece of masking tape—sticky side in—across the bottom edge of your back-drop. Attach each end of the tape directly to the wall. This piece of tape will prevent your streamers from moving.[8]

If you want the streamers to move with the breeze, don’t tape the streamers to the wall. This will provide you with a less structured, and perhaps more whimsical backdrop.

Trim the streamers just below the edge of the tape. With a pair of scissors, carefully trim each streamer near the bottom edge of the tape. You will cover the bottom with a streamer, so don’t worry about trimming each streamer perfectly.[9]

Cover the bottom edge with a piece of crepe paper. Stick several pieces of rolled masking tape along the bottom edge of your back-drop. Roll a single streamer along the taped edge in a straight line. When the backdrop is done, you will have a solid rectangle or square of crepe paper to pose in front of.[10]

You can add two small vertical streamers to each corner so that it matches the top.

Hang streamers throughout the venue. You can hang streamers from just about any surface—all you need is some scotch tape. Hang a row of streamers across the top of a doorway or window. Alternatively, you may hang streamers along the front of a table or the back of a chair.

Drape streamers around the room. Tape one end of the streamer to a surface, like a table or a wall. Loosely run the streamer across the surface. As you go, periodically tape the streamer to the surface itself to create a “U” shaped drape.

Wrap streamers around a banister or railing. Tape the streamer to one end of the banister or railing. Wrap the streamer tightly around the banister or railing until the entire length is covered. Cut the streamer from the roll and tape the end in place.[11]

Fold the streamer over itself to create multiple 12 inch (30.48 cm) layers. This will allow you to fringe the entire length of the streamer very quickly and efficiently. Once you reach the desired length, cut the folded streamer from the roll.

Fringe your streamers. With a pair of scissors, make multiple cuts up and down the two long edges of the folded streamer. To avoid severing the streamer, stop the scissors just shy of the center every time When you're finished, the streamer will have a festive, thin fringe running up and down both edges.

Hang the fringed streamer. Attach one end of the streamer to the surface of your choice with a piece of scotch tape. Walk the streamer to the other end point, twisting the crepe paper as you go. Attach the other end of the streamer to a second surface. The fringed streamers will add flair to any party.[13]

You can buy some metallic paint and some streamers, but there is a chance of the color bleeding.You can DIY them at home, but you'd need to soak them in water to remove the dye so it won't bleed. Then paint with your choice of metallic paint and then laminate it.

Tips

Select a streamer color or colors that match the occasion. For example, if you're decorating to watch a sports game or celebrate a win, choose your team's colors; use red, white and blue streamers to decorate for the Fourth of July; orange and black for Halloween; red, green, silver and white for Christmas; and neutral tones for Thanksgiving.

To decorate with streamers, try draping them around the room by taping one end to the wall and creating a “U”-shaped drape across the wall every few feet. If there is a bannister or railing, you can wind the streamers around them until it’s covered along its length. For a multi-colored look, layer two different-colored streamers together and staple the ends, twisting it as you hang them so that you can see both colors.